Robovision Secures $42 Million Funding
Date Section News
Belgian Hyperscaler Tackles Global Labor Shortage with AI-powered Automation
GHENT, Belgium, March 28, 2024 — Robovision, a leading European AI company specializing in AI-powered computer vision, has successfully raised $42 million in its latest investment round. The round was led by Target Global and Astanor Ventures, known for their significant contributions to high-growth companies. Astanor Ventures, as an impact investor, will play a vital role in amplifying Robovision’s positive global impact mission. Red River West, the transatlantic fund known for facilitating the US expansion of European firms, is also joining the funding round. Including existing investments from PE Capital Group, Atlasinvest, Dovesco, Finindus, and Flanders Future Tech Fund, Robovision’s funding to date totals $65 million.
Headquartered in Ghent, Robovision’s groundbreaking AI-powered computer vision platform enables customers across more than 45 countries to revolutionize their automation processes across a multitude of industries. With more than 1,000 of its machines deployed across the world, Robovision offers an end-to-end, no-code solution for machinery manufacturers and production lines across a multitude of sectors. To date, the company has generated over $250m in sales for their partners and has been particularly effective in the agricultural space as seen through the company’s partnership with ISO Group where they are helping plant 1 billion tulips annually (half of the world’s production). Furthermore, in the high-tech manufacturing sector, they have been a trusted partner to Japanese giant Hitachi in helping them produce semiconductor wafers.
The Robovision platform is unique in its ability to upgrade existing machinery and production lines with Vision AI, enabling next-level automation. A critical success factor for this automation is the empowerment of their end-users such as factory operators and farmers who are able to create and maintain their own AI models. This Industrial AI capability, blending domain-specific knowledge with cutting-edge technology, has the ability to revolutionize factories by enabling smarter, fit-for-purpose automation.
The funding round will help accelerate Robovision’s U.S. expansion, fostering a robust local presence to address the increasing demand for automated solutions in American factories. The funds will also be used to invest in R&D and growth in existing markets with future office openings planned across Germany, France, the UK, Middle East and Asia.
Securing investments from distinguished backers positions us uniquely to drive innovation, strengthen our global presence, and further solidify our position as pioneers in AI-powered automation. I look forward to this next chapter in our journey as we accelerate our expansion into new markets and carry out our strategic vision.
Thomas Van den Driessche
Robovision founder Jonathan Berte said, “More than a decade ago, I sat down with Tim Waegeman, my co-founder and CTO who was in the midst of completing his PhD in machine learning. We quickly realized that this technology had the potential to completely rewrite the rules of the game in industrial automation. We are grateful to our investors for their support and look forward to putting our technological leadership to use in order to accelerate the industrial adoption of AI on a global scale.”
Robovision epitomizes the caliber of visionary teams we aspire to champion. The advanced Robovision AI platform, propelling transformative applications across diverse sectors, underscores the profound potential of cutting-edge vision technology. Our investment in Robovision is underpinned by our belief in their forward-thinking approach, surpassing industry benchmarks in key metrics.
Bao-Y Van Cong, Partner at Target Global
Hendrik Van Asbroeck from Astanor Ventures adds, “We invest in leaders in innovation, especially if they contribute to a more sustainable food system. Robovision’s spectacular innovations in agriculture were made possible by a team that is not just capable of imagining the future, but knows how to execute on it. It’s even more exciting to see the quality of the platform they’ve built is successfully enabling them to scale their impact to other industries like manufacturing."
About Robovision
Robovision (www.robovision.ai) helps businesses in today’s fast-moving and competitive world through its AI-powered computer vision platform. Any user—from factory operators and farmers to engineers and physicians—are able to create and retrain dynamic AI solutions. By adding intelligence to machines, complex automation challenges are solved with innovative outcomes, often leading to industry-wide disruption. Today, Robovision is trusted to power more than 1,000 robots in over 40 countries.
For more information about Robovision, please contact:
press@robovision.ai
+32 494 55 03 56
About Target Global
Target Global is a leading pan-European technology investment firm dedicated to backing Europe’s innovative talent and helping them grow into global champions. With more than €3 billion in assets under management, Target invests in companies across all sectors, geographies and stages of their lifecycle, from pre-seed to pre-IPO.
Since 2015, Target has invested in global winners including Delivery Hero, Revolut, Rapyd, and many others, supporting them in their growth and providing insights on their endeavors. To date, Target has backed 15 unicorns, had 21 exits and 7 realized IPOs. To learn more about Target Global, please visit targetglobal.vc.
About Astanor Ventures
Astanor Ventures is a global B Corp certified impact venture capital investor that backs ambitious entrepreneurs with disruptive, scalable solutions that will create systemic change across the agrifood value chain, from soil to gut. With a demonstrated commitment to sustainability and impactful investments, Astanor Ventures identifies and nurtures early-stage companies that harness technology to drive positive change.
With a keen focus on climate transition, nature positivity, resource efficiency, and social and health enhancements, Astanor Ventures is at the forefront of fostering a regenerative and sustainable bioeconomy. The fund therefore classifies as an article 9 fund within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 and is also a Diversity VC certified fund. Visit https://astanor.com/
About Red River West
Red River West is a transatlantic VC fund dedicated to supporting exceptional European technology companies with differentiated offerings for the US market. The fund is led by tech entrepreneurs and investors based both in Europe and the US who all share a track record of building and backing start-ups which became global leaders through EU to US expansion. Red River West believes Europe is home to a talented and driven pool of entrepreneurs. By providing significant financial firepower and hands-on support in Europe & the US, Red River West helps these entrepreneurs realize their full potential. For more information visit: www.redriverwest.com.